China holds military drills in areas adjoining Ladakh

Amid mounting tensions between India and Pakistan following the Pahalgam terror attack, China has added a fresh twist by conducting a firing exercise with live ammunition in Tibet, facing eastern Ladakh.

Sources in India confirmed that China was conducting a military exercise that included firing by truck-mounted artillery guns and long-range rockets. Though the exercise is in China’s own territory, its timing and the prevailing situation between India and Pakistan, has merited a hard look from security agencies about Beijing’s intentions.

There was also unusual Chinese military movement on the G219 highway in Tibet. The two nations were locked in a military stand-off from April 2020 to October 2024 along several locations along the Line of Actual Control — the de facto and un-demarcated boundary between the two countries.

In October last year, the two sides announced completed disengagement in the Depsang and Demchok regions of eastern Ladakh and said patrolling would begin soon. However, a large number of troops of both sides are deployed close to the LAC.

National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who are special representatives on the boundary question, have been tasked with working out a solution.

After the Pahalgam terror attack, China has called for a “swift and fair investigation” and expressed support for its all-weather ally Pakistan in safeguarding its sovereignty and security interests amid Islamabad’s rising tensions with India.

India